Learning to swim, again
“Are you ok?” Matt asked, I nodded, “sure?” he asked, I nodded again but I don’t think I was all that convincing! My chest was tightening making it harder and harder to swim. We were on the far side of Coogee bay and it was my... read more
My Clipper Family
Time for a little blog recycling! This blog was written approximately 2 years ago about my fellow leg 5 watch mates as we sailed from Brisbane to Singapore on the Clipper Race. As I’m now in Sydney and getting to hang out with some of my down under boat family... read more
Embracing Change
Change can be a bit Marmite (or should that be Vegemite in honour of my new country, Australia?!) you either love it or hate it. But I don’t believe that change should be hated, or even feared, in fact I think it should be embraced and here’s why. Over the... read more
Vagueness & it’s place in guarding my dreams
I’m going to start by going back, to a post I wrote in March 2015. “Time to stop lying” In January I will be moving to Australia. As I’m sure you can imagine I have been asked numerous times if I’ve got a job lined up or what I’m planning on... read more
Bungy jumping to freedom
And now 14 years later my older and wiser(?) self is stood with my toes curled over the edge of a bigger bungy jump. Not a physical one (this time!) but a mental and an emotional one as I step away from the security of a monthly salary and a 9-5 (ish) job to the unknown.
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Isle of Wight Row
On the 13th of May myself and 7 awesome ladies set out to row around the Isle of Wight. It’s a good job I can row faster then I can write a blog or else I would still be rowing! But here, finally, is my account of how we got on! The car park dash The day began... read more
Helen conquers London to Brighton
Helen was one of the very first birthday challengers, she actually completed her challenge way before me back in 2013! Since Helen completed her challenge I have set up this website and finally interviewed Helen to find out more about it. Since Helen completed her... read more
Who’s in the boat?
On Wednesday (the more observant amongst you will notice that this has gone back a day due to kinder weather!) myself and 7 other ladies will be rowing around the Isle of Wight, but who are these people crazy enough to subject themselves to 10 to 12 hours of rowing... read more
So am I feeling ready? Hell no!
The countdown has slipped by from months to weeks, and now to days. So with our Isle of Wight row nearly upon us am I feeling ready? Hell no! The surgical spirit for toughening my hands is still sat looking at me in its unopened bottle. I still need to get some... read more
Watch out 3 Peaks, Leanne is coming!
Leanne is an awesome friend, who I lived with in New Zealand too many years ago to count. We almost fell out over an episode of Shortland Street shortly after meeting but luckily friendship won out! This Friday (& Saturday, and Sunday!) Leanne will be climbing... read more
Cookie goes crookie!
With our row around the Isle of Wight coming up and tales of choppy waters my mind has turned to my old friend, seasickness! So I have been digging out my seasickness patches and I dug out an old blog whilst I was at it. This blog was written whilst sailing from San... read more
1 month down 2 months to go..
It’s now just under two months until the big day, and a month has passed since I started taking this training thing seriously. We have been out rowing as a crew and I have been showing my face more regularly at the gym, so how have we been getting on? We have... read more
How many flapjacks can you eat in 10 hours?
Today I learnt that sitting on your bum for 10 hours, eating flapjacks at 30 minutes intervals is not in fact frowned upon, it’s actively encouraged! So that’s just what I will be doing on the 12th of May. There’s only one slight catch; I have to be... read more
Fit in two weeks!
In just under two weeks I will be taking part in my first training sessions to row around the Isle of Wight. On Sunday when I originally intended to write this, I would have had exactly two weeks to get fit. That’s not long, not long at all, but good old Google... read more
A rower short of a picnic!
On the 12th of May six friends and I will be rowing around the Isle of Wight. It will also be a gorgeous sunny day! It’s all a little bit exciting, (when I say a little I quite often mean very!). I have a new challenge to grasp hold of. I’ve got to get... read more
Pamela is dusting off her swimming goggles!
Pamela has set herself a great challenge of learning to swim underwater. As she explained to me she’s terrified of putting her face in the water and not being able to breathe so this is a amazing hurdle to overcome, go Pamela! What is your Birthday Challenge? I... read more
Leanne does The Three Peaks
Leanne has been busy getting fit so she’s ready to do the Three Peaks Challenge in April 2015. Leanne is a keen walker and is getting fitter than I would deem necessary for this one so I know she will smash it out! What is it? The Three Peaks challenge is... read more
Coast to Coast
The idea Click click. Click. Clicky click click. The Chinese water torture equivalent of modern life. A slurp of coffee, more clicking, occasionally punctuated by a disgruntled beep from the beige box sat on the desk dictating your 9-5. There is a whole world out... read more
What if you couldn’t fail?
I had put pen to paper and scribbled down my answers to the question ‘What projects would you take on if you knew you couldn’t fail?’
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